The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-08-26
IN A GALE ON THE LAKE.
A THRILLING TALE OF SHIPwRECK
AND SUFFERING.

Davy Jones Gets His First Prisoner by
Washed from Plank to Which He
Was Clinging-The Only Survivor
Hurled Senseless on the Beach.
CHICAGO, Aug. 25.-A special from Mil
ler, Ind, reports the first fatal wreck of the
season. The schooner Clara, of Manistee,
was driven ashore yesterday, and her wreck
age is strewn along the beach for miles.
Capt Olson, her master and owner, and one
of the sailors, lost their lives, and John
Gustavson, the mate, escaped by swimming
ashore on plank. The vessel was bound
for Chicago with cargo of lumber. She
left Manistee Monday morning with a light
wind, but toward afternoon squall swept
down upon her from the northeast, jerking
her head sails out of the bolt ropes, and
crippling her so that she became unmanage-
able
STAGGERING BEFORE A GALE
All night long she staggered before gale
that kept increasing in violence. The sea
ran very high and the waves swept her
decks of everything movable. She arrived
off Chicago in such a disabled condition
harbor, and she was driven up the lake.
Realizing that she was about to be wrecked
on the beach, Capt. Olson let go his anchor
when abreast this place, but the fiul1es failed
to hold and she dragged on the sandbar,
half mile from shore The seas kept dash
ing over her and her crew of three men
were compelled to climb into the rigging
and lash themselves to keep from being
washed overheard In less than an hour the
coverings of the matches were carried away
and the sea swept into the hold, filling it to
the decks
SWEPT OVERHEARD.
Then she rolled over on her side aud
Hans Christensen was carried away on the
crest of a wave. Capt. Olsen and Gustav
son got hold of a plank. It was raining
hard, and the night was SO dark that they
could see nothing, but they clung to the
plank in the hope that the, waves would
push it onward to the beach. Gustavson
says he heard a loud cry, and looking be-
hind him saw the captain had relaxed his
hold and was even then disappearing be-
meath the waves. He was unable to help
him, and the captain went down.
DASHED ON THE SHORE.
Gustavson does not recollect much about
his battle for life Three times the plank
turned over and buried him in the water,
but he hung on to it and was dashed, bleed
ing and senSeless on the sandy beach. When
he regained his senses he was lying on his
| back with rain pouring down on his face.
| There was not a house in sight, for the vii
| lage is three miles back from the lake.
Naked, bruised and bleeding he made his
way along the beach to the club mouse of
the Calumet Shooting Club.
FELL PAINTING BY THE DOOR,
He had just enough strength to give a
feeble rap on the door, and when it opened
| he fell fanting across the threshold. He
was carried inside and kindly cared for
until he recovered sufficiently to relate his
story and after being provided with cloth
ing took a train for Chicago. Before leaving,
| Gustavson went down to the beach to see
what had become of the wreck. He found
that it had broken up, and broken timberS
and cargo were scattered in every direction.
THE CAPTAINS CHEST ROBBED
The captains chest, which Gustavson says
contained large sum of money, was found,
but it was broken open and its contents
were missing Gustavson thinks the chest
had been rihed by thieves. Neither of the
bodies have been recovered. All day and
night crowd of men from the village have
been on the beach gathering up the cargo as
it driftei ashore and hauling it away Ben
Langloys, of the Chicago life saving crew,
who came down here with a reporter, says
he never saw such hungry lot of thieves
around wreck in his life.